Centerless engine.



L. PASSMORE. CENTERLESS ENGINE. APPLICATION mm NOV. 25. I914.

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Patented Sept. 14,1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

INVENTOR LEVIS PASSMORE, F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

CENTERLESS ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 14, 1915.

Application filed November 25, 1914. Serial No. 873,938.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, LEVIS PASSMORE, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Centerless Engine, of which the following is-a specification.

My invention consists of an englne which is adapted to communicate its power to a driving shaft without the employment of a crank on said shaft.

The invention is satisfactorily illustrated in the accompanying drawing, but the important instrumentalities thereof may be varied, as long as they are inclined 1n the scope of the claims.

Figure 1 represents a top or plan new of a centerless engine embodying my invention. Figs. 2 and 3 represent elevations of opposite sides thereof. Fig. 4 represents a partial side elevation and a partial long1- tudinal section of portions thereof. Fig. 5 represents a side elevation of a detached portion. Fig. 6 represents a transverse section on the line a e-ac Fig. 4. Fig. 7 repre sents a perspective view of one of the spur wheels and attached lugs that are employed. Fig. 8 represents a perspective view of a weighting device for the dogs employed. Fig. 9 represents a side elevation of one of the spur wheels and appurtenances thereof that are employed. Fig. 10 represents a transverse section ,on the line y Fig. 9. Fig. 11 represents a vertical sectlon of a portion on line 22 Fig. 3. Flg. 12 represents a side elevation of adetached portlon.

Similar numerals of reference indicate,

corresponding parts in the figures.

Referring to the drawings :1 designates thecylinder of the engine, 2 the piston therein, and 3 the piston rod, connected with the outer end of which latter is the slide head 4 which is freely supported on the bed plate 5 and has connected with it the horizontally extending parallel racks 6 and 7, the same extending staggered from the upper and lower ends of the portion 8 of said slide, they being separated leaving the space 9 between them whereby said racks may ongage respectivelywith the spur wheels 10 and 11, the latter being mounted side by side loosely on the driving shaft 12 of the engine, the bearings thereof being on the bed plate 5 opposite to the cylinder 1.

On the cylinder 1 is mounted the chamber 13 in which is contained the rotary balanced dent purposes.

The axis 17 of the valve 14 is a rock shaft which is mounted on the sides of the chamber 13, one end thereof on-the exterior of said chamber having connected with it the crank or radial arm 18 whose opposite sides are adapted to be engaged successively with the spaced-apart jogs or shoulders 19 on the sliding bar 20, the latter being connected as at 20 with the, slide head 4 so that the mo- .tion of the latter will be communicated to said rod and cause said jogs to contact successively with opposite sides of the crank arm 18 so as to operate the valve 14, whereby it will turn in reverse directions in order to close one ofthe ports and open the other port, and then to close the latter named port and open the first named port, whereby steam may be directed into the cylinder to be expanded against the opposite sides of the piston 2, whereby the latter receives its motions in opposite directions, as is evident. The portion of the bar that carries the jogs or shoulders 19 has a longitudinally-extending recess therein so as to pass freely over the end of the axis 17 of the valve 14.

The cylinder is also provided with exhaust ports 21 connected with which are the chambers of the rotary valves 22, whose axes have connected with them respectively the links 23 and 25, the two links being connected by the bar 24. The shaft 25 of the link '25 carries the rocking arm 26 which latter is pivotally connected with the bar 27 to which is pivotally attached one limb of the toggle 28 which is pivotally mounted as at 28 on the bed plate 5 of the engine. The other limb 29 of said toggle is slotted in longitudinal direction and adapted to receive the wrist pin .30 on the adjacent end of the slide head 4, whereby the motions of the latter are communicated to said toggle 28, the rod 27, the arms 26 and 25, connecting rod 24 of the links 23 and consequently the valves 22 so that the exhaust ports 21 will be successively opened and closed for the purposes of the exhaust of the engine as is evident.

On the sides of each of the spur wheels 10 and 11 are the spaced apart lugs 31 either of which is adapted to be engaged by the nose of the double-ended dog 32, there being one of such dogs for each spur wheel at the side thereof, each dog being pivotally carried by an arm 33 which is mounted on the driving shaft 12 and keyed or otherwlse rigidly secured thereto so that the motions of said arm will be communicated to sa d shaft, said arm being adapted to receive its motion by the respective lug 31 WhlCh is carried around by the respective gear wheel or pinion, which latter is loose on the driving shaft and receives its rotation by the movement of the respective rack 6 or 7 as will be hereinafter more fully referred to.

Mounted on the bed plate 5 are the gravitating legs 34, the members of which are connected with the rock shaft 35 whose bearings are on the standards 36 which rise from the bearings of the driving shaft 1 and so disposed in relationto the spur wheels 10 and 11 that the dogs 32 will be subjected at different times to the weight of said legs and thereby held in operative contact with the respective lug 31, so that the latter due.

to the rotation of one of the respective spur wheels 10 or 11 will on the forward motion of the slide head 4 operate the respective arm 33, and cause a half revolution of the shaft while on the return .motion of said slide head, the other gear wheel or pinion Will operate its lug 31 and the arm 33 engagingthe latter so as to cause a half revolution of said shaft, thus making the complete revolution of the latter.

In order to limit the descent of the legs 34 the. rock shaft 35 thereof has projecting from it the arm 37 which is adapted to contact with the bar 38 which is supported on the top of the frames of the rack 6 and 7, said bar being slidable on said frames in the longitudinal direction of the racks and being connected with one of the legs 34 so that it may be moved with the latter, the overturning of the lugs being employed when it is desired to reverse the engine in which case one of the legs is shifted from the end of the dog on which it is imposed to the opposite end of said dog, whereby the latter is released from the lug 31 with which it is engaged and caused to engage the opposite lug on the same gear wheel or pinion, so that the arms 33 will receive motion in reverse direction to that which they previously received, and thus the driving shaft will be reversed in its rotation.

The rock shaft 35 has connected with it the handle 39 for reversing the position of the legs 34, the outer end of the same having the weight 40 thereon so as to increase the weight of the legs to cause the latter to legs 34, it rides under the same and is pressed inwardly so that its 'nose engages with the lug 31 in the path of said nose, thus coupling the wheel that has the engaged nose thereon with the adjacent arm 33 and so rotating the latter that as it is keyedto the driving shaft, a half turn rotation is .imparted to the said shaft. Meanwhile the other dog' hangs loosely, free from the lugs on the ad] acent spur wheel, but as the latter rotates, it presses said dog inwardly and engages it with the lug on the spur wheel, thus causing the dog to move the arm 33 to which it is pivotally attached, and thus said arm continues the rotation of the driving shaft imparting another half turn thereto, and so causing the complete rotation of said shaft whose power may be transmitted elsewhere.

The slidable bar 38 is connected with one of the legs34 by means of a curved arm 41 which is pivotally attached to said leg and bar, so that in overturning said legs, the arm 41 follows the same and so draws said bar with it and changes its position with re lat-ion to the rockshaft 35. Thebar 38 and the arm 41 serve to assist in the overturning of the legs 34 to change them from the position inwhich they are shown in Fig. 2 to that in which they are shown in Fig. 12.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an engine, a shaft, a plurality of rotatable members loosely mounted on said shaft, sliding means for rotating the same, dogs carried by said shaft and cooperating means carried by said rota-ting members whereby a complete rotation of said shaft by the to and fro movement of said sliding means is effected, and pivotal weighting means cooperating with said dogs.

2. In an engine, a plurality of spur wheels, slidable means adapted for rotating the same, a driving shaft on which said wheels are loosely mounted, a plurality of arms mounted on said shaft and fixed thereto, a dog carried on each of said arms, said wheels being provided with means with which said dogs may engage, whereby said arms are adapted to rotate said driving shaft each a half turn, and so successively a full turn, and a device on the frame of the engine adapted to weight said dogs.

3. In an engine, a plurality of spur Wheels, slidable means adapted for rotating the same, a driving shaft on which said wheels are loosely mounted, a plurality of arms mounted on said shaft and fixed thereto, a

dog carried on each "of said arms, said wheels being provided with means with which said dogs may engage, 'wherebysaid arms are adapted to rotate said driving shaft each a half turn, and so successively a full turn, a device on the frame of the engine adapted to weight said dogs, said device being adapted to be reversed and thereby shift the position of said dogs causing a reversal of the engine.

4. In an engine, a plurality of spur wheels, slidable means adapted for rotating the same, a drivingshaft on which said wheels are loosely mounted, a plurality of arms mountedon said shaft and fixed thereto, a dog carried on each of said arms, said wheels being provided with means with which said dogs may engage whereby said arms are adapted to rotate said driving shaft each a half turn and so successively a full turn, a device on the frame. of the engine adapted to weight said dogs, a movable member on the said slidable means, apivotal connection for said member and weighting device, the latter being adapted to be overturned for the purpose of reversing the engine, and a stop piece on said weighting device adapted to be supported on said movable member to limit the descent of said weighting member on said dogs.

5. In an engine, a shaft, a plurality of rotatable means loosely mounted thereon for causing rotation of said shaft, slidable means ,engageable with said rotatable means for rotating the same, each rotatable means being provided with lugs, a double-ended pivoted member for cooperation with each rotatable member and cooperating with said lugs and means mounted on said shaft for carrying said double-ended pivoted member, and {)veighting means for said double-ended memers.

6. In an engine, a shaft, a plurality of rotatable members loosely mounted thereon, slidable means engageable with said rotatable means to rotate the same, each rotatable member being provided with lugs, a double-ended pivoted member for cooperation with each rotatable member and cooperating with said lugs, and means mounted on said shaft for carrying said double-ended said double-ended members, an arm movable with said weighting means, a slidable bar and a curved arm connecting said bar and a member of the weighting means and pivotally mounted to move said bar backward and forward as the weighting means are overturned.

8. In an engine, a slide head adapted to be operated by the piston of an engine, rack bars carried by said head, a plurality of spur wheels adapted to be operated respectively by said racks, a driving shaft on which said wheels are loosely mounted, said wheels having spaced-apart lugs, a plurality of arms which are mounted on said driving shaft and fixed thereto, dogs movably mounted on said arms and carried by the same and adapted to be engaged by the respective lugs on said spur wheels to operate said arms and adapting each of the latter to rotate the driving shaft, and avpivoted weighting device for said dogs.

9. In an engine, a slide head, spur wheels and cooperating racks, a driving shaft on which said wheels are loosely mounted, a dog for each wheel, legs, a rock shaft carrying the same, and a weighted reversing handle connected with said rock shaft to cause the latter to bear on either of said dogs.

7 LEVIS PASSMORE.

Witnesses:

JOHN A. WIEDERSHEIM, N. Bnssmcmz. 

